During a telephone conversation, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan discussed a sharp exacerbation of the situation in the zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The conversation took place on the initiative of Yerevan, the Kremlin press service informs.

Vladimir Putin expressed concern over the resumption of large-scale clashes. 

“Now it is important to take all the necessary efforts to prevent further escalation of the confrontation, and most importantly, it is necessary to stop hostilities,” the Kremlin press service quotes the content of the conversation.

Let us remind you that in the morning of September 27 it became known about the resumption of armed clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Both sides accuse each other of escalating the conflict.

Baku declares about "military provocation" from the Armenian side.

Yerevan, in turn, informs about the "beginning of the offensive" of the Azerbaijani troops.

The ethnopolitical conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, which during the years of the Soviet Union was a region with a predominantly Armenian population within the Azerbaijan SSR, began to escalate in 1987.

In the period from 1991 to 1994, active hostilities took place in the region.

The conflict remains unresolved, and the territory of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region of the Azerbaijan SSR and several adjacent regions of Azerbaijan is controlled by the authorities of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

Clashes occur periodically on the line of contact.

On September 27, the Russian Foreign Ministry called on both sides to cease fire and start a dialogue.

In addition, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held telephone conversations with his Armenian counterpart Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, as well as with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov.

Earlier, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the government had introduced martial law in the country and announced a general mobilization of the reserve in connection with the aggravation of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Soon it became known that the Azerbaijani parliament at an emergency meeting also decided to introduce martial law.

The corresponding decree was later signed by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.

In addition, in a number of cities and regions, from September 28, a curfew is introduced, which will operate from 21:00 (20:00 Moscow time) to 06:00 (05:00 Moscow time).

Meanwhile, a representative of the State Service of Azerbaijan for Mobilization and Conscription for Military Service said that the introduction of martial law does not mean general mobilization. 

Both sides also reported losses.

According to information from Yerevan, during Sunday's clashes, 16 Armenian soldiers were killed, another 100 people were injured.

According to Baku, 19 civilians were injured as a result of shelling from the Armenian side.

Meanwhile, in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, it was reported that over 50 settlements were attacked by Azerbaijani troops.

Ombudsman in Karabakh Artak Beglaryan stated this.

According to him, damage has been caused to hundreds of real estate objects, infrastructure, power lines, gas pipelines, water pipes and cars.

Beglaryan called on the international community to assess these events and stressed that the further continuation of hostilities could lead to a humanitarian catastrophe.

  • Military footage on the line of contact between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Meanwhile, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to end armed clashes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Borrell noted that he held talks with the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, stressing the importance of an immediate ceasefire.

At the same time, the EU stated that “there is no military solution to the conflict” and called on the parties to return to negotiations within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.

In addition, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Prime Minister of Albania Edi Rama called for an early ceasefire.

His statement was published on the organization's website.

“I urge everyone involved to immediately return to the ceasefire before the death toll in the conflict grows even more,” he said.

In turn, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the use of force and called on the parties "to return to constructive negotiations without delay."

This was announced by the representative of the head of the organization Stephane Dujarric, adding that Guterres is going to hold negotiations with the Prime Minister of Armenia and the President of Azerbaijan.